It is 7 miles 16 chains (11.6 km) down the line from London Charing Cross and is situated between Lewisham and either Grove Park or Lee depending on the route.

The station straddles the Prime Meridian, which is marked across the roof of the pedestrian tunnel forming the main entrance.

The red brick gateposts are still visible outside the site, which was occupied by a timber merchant for many years, but is now being redeveloped for residential use.

Since 1974, access to the new booking hall, located between platforms 4 and 5, has been up a ramp from a foot tunnel which runs between Staplehurst Road and Maythorne Cottages.

Planning permission has been granted for a new footbridge and lifts to be installed providing step-free access [3], and construction work started in early 2025[4].

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:[5] During the peak hours, the station is served by an additional half-hourly circular service to and from London Cannon Street via Lewisham in the clockwise direction and Sidcup, Woolwich Arsenal and Greenwich in the anticlockwise direction.